This book was heavy going just because of the way in which it was written and the complexity of the subject matter, but it was also a lot of fun. In it, Christie writes about her experiences going on archaeological digs with her husband Max Mallowan before the outbreak of the Second World War, which makes this an interesting mix of memoir, travel writing and historical non-fiction.

Having already read An Autobiography by Agatha Christie, I have to say that this feels more like a missing chunk of the autobiography than a standalone memoir in its own right. Still, I was fascinated by what Christie had to share here, and while there was a little bit of a colonialist attitude from time to time, it didn’t ruin the thing.

For me, there’s a lot to love here, but I can also see why this wouldn’t be the perfect book for everyone. You’ll need to have at least a passing interest in archaeology, though.